USAID Biodiversity (Jal Jangal) Vacancy for Community Forests Coordinator

Community Forests Coordinator

TYPE OF EMPLOYMENT: Short Term Technical Assistance
BASE OF OPERATIONS: Kailali
LEVEL OF EFFORT: 90 days
PERIOD OF PERFORMANCE: February 1 – September 30, 2025
USAID Biodiversity (Jal Jangal) will conserve nature, enhance human well-being, and safeguard Nepal’s biodiversity to improve the health of ecosystems, fight environmental crime, and improve the ability of communities to prepare for and adapt to impacts caused by climate change and natural disasters. The activity will achieve measurable conservation targets within the biodiversity-rich, terrestrial, and freshwater ecosystems in and around the Chitwan-Annapurna Landscape, Kailash Sacred Landscape, Terai Arc Landscape, and the proposed Karnali Conservation Landscape while increasing resilience to climate change and contributing to the inclusive and sustainable development of the Nepali people. To accomplish this, USAID Biodiversity (Jal Jangal) will implement activities aligned with three mutually interrelated and reinforcing objectives: Improve the health of ecosystems (Objective 1), Strengthen environmental crime control and natural resource safeguards (Objective 2), enhance the climate resilience of natural and human systems (Objective 3) and Enhance government collaboration and liaison.

Objectives

The primary objective of this assignment is to collect data from biologically significant areas, including forest conservation areas and biological wildlife corridors, to assess the current status, identify issues, and propose solutions with specific forest conservation actions. The selected candidate will work under the Landscape Team Leader and support local site-level interventions and partner organizations, while also providing necessary coordination with local governments and stakeholders.

Tasks and Responsibilities

The Community Forests Coordinator will be responsible for carrying out the following tasks:

• Identify biologically significant areas for improvement, create accurate GIS maps of target areas for intervention and propose specific set of actions for improvement.
• Gather information on biodiversity hotspots, corridor connectivity, and forest conservation areas. Assess current status, connectivity issues, and potential USAID interventions for solutions. S/he will also support in field survey and data collection for community forests operation plan revision in Basanta forest conservation area.
• Based on the site survey, observation and consultations, s/he will identify issues and support the technical team to prepare a SOW to address the specific issues/challenges of the specific sites.
• Oversee day-to-day operations, implementation, and monitoring of activities within the designated geographic area.
• Provide guidance, coaching, and monitoring to grantees, subcontractors, and partners.
• Collaborate with local governments, development partners, and communities to implement site-level interventions and to get leverage from the interested relevant stakeholders.
• Assist the Landscape Lead and team members in ensuring quality control and reporting, in coordination with the M&E Comms team.
• Conduct trainings on forest management, biodiversity conservation, climate change resilience, environmental crime control, and human-wildlife coexistence. Handle advances and settlements related to these trainings.
• Collect evidence of changes resulting from project interventions and report on these findings to DAI.

Deliverables and timeline

The Community Forests Coordinator will carry out field survey, monitoring, and community mobilization in close coordination with the USAID Biodiversity (Jal Jangal) Landscape office – Dhangadhi. Following are the deliverables:

Qualifications

• Bachelor’s degree in forestry, watershed management, natural resource management, environmental science, climate change, or a related field with three years of relevant work experience or Proficiency
• Certificate level in forestry with at least 5 years of relevant field work experience.
• Strong written and verbal communication skills in Nepali and English.
• Proficiency in MS Office software and GIS software.
• Candidates with experience in biodiversity, conservation, and/or climate change, preferably with an international donor-funded organization, and those based in or around the geographic area will be given preference.

Supervision

The Community Forests Coordinator will work under the direct supervision of Senior Program Officer and technical guidance from the Landscape Team Leader, Dhangadhi.

Application Link:

https://fs23.formsite.com/OLJTgx/qkrayasxdi/index

Application instructions:

Please select the position and location for which you are interested in applying for, fill out the required information and upload your CV. Only shortlisted applicants will receive notifications on the next steps.

Interested candidates should submit their application no later than 7 January 2025.

Women and persons from excluded groups are encouraged to apply.

DAI promotes workforce diversity and considers excluded groups to include women, Dalits, indigenous ethnic groups, Madhesi, Muslim, persons with disabilities, people living in remote areas, and sexual and gender minorities.